The psychological Well-Being of University Students amidst COVID-19 Pandemic : scoping review, systematic review and meta-analysis

• Published in: Sultan Qaboos University medical journal Vol. 22; no. 2; pp. 179 - 197
• Main Authors: Ebrahim, Ahmad H., Dhahi, Ali, al-Husayn, Muhammad Ali, Jahrami, Haytham Ali
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Muscat, Oman Sultan Qaboos University, College of Medicine and Health Sciences 01-05-2022; Sultan Qaboos University Medical Journal, College of Medicine & Health Sciences
• Subjects: COVID-19 - epidemiology; Humans; Pandemics; Review; SARS-CoV-2; Students; Universities; Depression; Pandemic; Anxiety; Mental Health; Adolescents; SARS-COV-2
• ISSN: 2075-051X; 2075-0528
• DOI: 10.18295/squmj.6.2021.081

This review aimed to summarise the current evidence relating to university students' psychological well being amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. A scoping review, using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews guidelines, was first conducted to determine if the evidence can be systematically reviewed and meta-analysed. The search was performed via Google Scholar, MEDLINE/PubMed, Science Direct, Scopus and Web of Science. A total of 90 original articles were selected for the scoping review. Meta analysis of a total of 46,284 cases revealed an overall pooled prevalence rate of 29.1% (95% confidence interval [CI] : 20.9-39.0; K = 9, N = 22357) for anxiety symptoms and 23.2% (95% CI : 15.7-32.9; K= 12, N = 23927) for depression symptoms. This data revealed that COVID-19 had a significant impact on university students' psychological well being.